


The Angel

by Made_Of_Love



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Death, F/M, Flowers, Garden of Heaven, Heaven, angel - Freeform, it's a happier story than you think, mostly Denmark, the others are just briefly mentioned - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-13
Updated: 2016-01-13
Packaged: 2018-05-13 18:35:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5712859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Made_Of_Love/pseuds/Made_Of_Love
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Remembering the life he once had, Matthias walks with an angel (das you) on his journey to Heaven.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Angel

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [The Angel](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/168829) by Hans Christian Andersen. 



> "The Angel" is a short story written by Hans Christian Andersen and made Hetalia-fied by me. I hope you like it.

At the end of his life, Matthias KhØler felt like he hadn’t accomplished anything. He guessed the gods must have felt the same way. When he died, he was still on earth. Was he supposed to have done something to earn his way into heaven? It wasn’t his fault he died so young and couldn’t do anything! He was sitting next to his body, watching his friends and family cry over him. He was just one more victim of a sickness that ravaged the land. Was this his “life” now? Wandering the earth because his soul didn’t float up to heaven? He stood shakily and walked from the house – heart heavy with sorrow. Outside he noticed a flower growing near his home, up between the cobblestones. He reached down and plucked the flower. It was a golden buttercup.  
  
“Ah, I see you got the first one already.” He looked up. There was a woman dressed in white with wings coming out of her back. It was obvious she was an angel.  
  
“You’re pretty plain looking for an angel.” You frowned at him.  
  
“I’m supposed to be your escort,” you explained, thinking it better to act as if he hadn’t just said that. You knew you were plain looking. You didn’t need him to point it out.  
  
“To heaven?”  
  
“Where else? But first we’re going to make a few stops.” You handed him a bag. “Hold on to that flower. We’re taking one from each place we stop at.”  
  
“Do we have to? Why can’t I just go to heaven, and, ya know, rest in peace?”  
  
“Don’t complain! Not many have an opportunity to go on such a journey, and many would be honored.”  
  
“Then can’t I trade places with them.”  
  
“No.” You sighed, pinching the bridge of your nose. This wasn’t going to be easy. “Come on. We’re burning daylight.”  
  
“Alright then. Where to first?”  
  
“There’s a field somewhere in France growing roses. Come along,” you said as you held a hand out to him.  
  
“Um, I don’t really need anyone to hold my hand.” You rolled your eyes before grabbing his hand and lifting off. He gasped and grasped onto you tightly as you lifted higher and higher. Matthias thought you were prepared to fly all the way to France, but you flew up until you were just above the clouds. Then you settled down there. Matthias stood in quiet awe on the cloud and watched as more aligned to form a path into the distance. You began to walk and he followed, slowly at first for fear of falling through the mound of effervescent fluff. But it seemed to hold his weight well enough so he continued onward. You giggled at his cautiousness.  
  
“Don’t worry. If you fall I’ll catch you.”  
  
“I would really rather just not fall.”  
  
“What’s the worst that could happen?” He wanted to say that he could die, but then it occurred to him that, oh right, he was already dead. He just sighed instead with a light frown on his face. After a few minutes of walking in silence, he was still frowning.  
  
“You were a much happier person in life,” you said finally, tired of his quiet sulking.  
  
“Hm.”  
  
“Were you childish in life?”  
  
“Why would you say that?!” he snapped at you.  
  
“The buttercup. They stand for childishness. Sometimes humility. Other times wealth or neatness. It all depends upon the person. So were you childish?”  
  
“I like to think not, but some people would say so.”  
  
“Did you ever want to be rich?”  
  
“All the time! I wanted to be able to take care of my family,” he said, a smile finally gracing his features. For as long as he knew a better life was possible, he longed for it. But he had only wanted it so that he might make the people in his life happy.  
  
“Then perhaps that’s it. You wanted wealth in life, so you’re more or less met with it in death. I take it you wanted the wealth for someone else?”  
  
“How did you know?”  
  
“Flowers only grow from good things. The flower wouldn’t have sprouted it you wanted the money only out of greed. You’re a generous person,” you said with a gentle smile. He blushed lightly. You seemed different when you smiled – not quite so plain looking.  
  
“How long do we have to walk?”  
  
“Why? You won’t get tired or anything.”  
  
“I figured as much. I just wanted to know how long it would take to get there.”  
  
“I thought you might enjoy the walk. It would have given you time to take in everything. If you want we can just take a chariot?”  
  
“Chariot would be nice. I don’t think I want to think this over too much.”  
  
“As you wish,” you said as all the clouds that formed a path aside from the one the two of you were standing on disappeared. The cloud you stood on morphed into a horseless chariot with wings on the side and the two of you began to travel much faster than before. “Did you have a good memory in France?”  
  
“Um, I met two close friends there. An American and a Prussian. We were all visiting with our families and I met them in a park. We would write all the time.”  
  
“They must be extremely dear to you.”  
  
“They are. We’ve been friends for twelve years.”  
  
“I’ve heard that friendships that last longer than a certain number of years will transcend lifetimes. You will be connected forever.” Matthias smiled at the thought. It was nice to know he would never truly have to say goodbye to those he cared about.  
  
It might have been half an hour later when the two of you touched down in a park. It had a wide field that stretched on into the horizon. Matthias recognized it as where he first met Alfred and Gilbert while he was visiting the country. He knew where he was headed because in the distance was a patch of bright yellow contrasting against the fields deep green. As he got closer, he saw that they were six yellow roses.  
  
“They say yellow roses are symbols of friendship. But you only told me about two of your friends. Who were the other three?” you questioned as you watched him carefully gather the flowers.  
  
“I guess the other four are Lukas, Tino, Berwald, and Emil. We’re with each other so often, I sometimes think we’re family rather than friends. They’re like brothers more than anything else. So what’s next?” he asked as he gingerly placed the flowers into the bag with the buttercup.  
  
“Norway.”  
  
“I have a question.”  
  
“I have an answer.”  
  
“Why are we gathering these? What do they mean?”  
  
“We gather flowers that they may bloom beautifully in heaven more than they ever could on earth. The Lord will then choose the flower he deems most beautiful to sing in his garden with the other flowers he has chosen to sing. It is a pure and beautiful melody that brings joy to one’s heart. As for the meaning, each flower stands for something that held significance to you in life. Other flowers may be significant in that they stand for something you brought into someone else’s life. Each rose is in full bloom. That means that the friendship you shared with each person is cherished deeply. They may have remained buds otherwise,” you explained as the two of you hopped back into the chariot.  
  
You rode in silence, you enjoying the wind blowing through your hair and Matthias watching you. You were different again, no longer plain. You had that subtle beauty that never showed upon first glance. You had a gentle, friendly face that felt familiar to him. But maybe the way you looked was just that invitingly welcoming.  
  
“So how did you become an angel?” You looked surprised by his question.  
  
“Well, for starters, I died.”  
  
“I thought angels just kind of… existed?” You laughed.  
  
“Well, they do. But some people earn their right to be angels. We have to keep pure in our hearts in order to earn wings. It takes more to earn a halo.” It was only just then that Matthias noticed that you didn’t have a halo.  
  
“Will getting me to heaven get you your halo?”  
  
“Yes.”  
  
“Ah, so that’s why you’re doing this.” You took his face in your hands, leaned in close, and looked deeply into his eyes.  
  
“That’s not at all why I’m doing this,” you said as you searched his eyes. Matthias felt his cheeks getting warm at the closeness. But then you smiled, giggled at his pink-tinged cheeks, and backed away.  
  
“S-so what flower are we going to get this time?”  
  
“I don’t know. I know the flowers that re significant to you. These must be significant to someone else. Who was from Norway?”  
  
“Norge. I mean, Lukas. He was, like, one of my first friends. He’s really rough around the edges and can be icier than winter, but I know I was definitely one of his best friends,” Matthias said with a smile.  
  
~  
  
You were in a fit of giggles. And Matthias was grumbling to himself as he plucked the bright geraniums while grumbling to himself. You quieted your laughter. He felt bad enough as it was. You told him that the meaning of the geraniums he was collecting was stupidity or folly. Which Lukas had apparently thought very much, given the number that had sprouted up there.   
  
“I’m sure he loved you, Matthias. Cheer up. You did say you two were like family. And your rose for him was in full bloom. Even if he didn’t show it. You really _were_ one of his best friends.”  
  
“Yes, but when he called me an idiot, I didn’t think he meant it,” he said with a pout, which only restarted your giggles. Then you noticed something dark and deeply colored with tiny flecks of light on it. It was an iris that was a deep cerulean with tiny flecks of gold upon it.  
  
“I suppose this means something insulting as well.”  
  
“No,” you breathed as you rested your hands on the shoulder of the crouched figure of Matthias. You leaned over his shoulder, and he turned his head to see you with an awe-stricken expression on your face. Your face was glowing and your eyes were bright with wonder. Cute. “The blue of it is so beautiful. I’ve never seen an iris like that in my life. Or death. It’s exquisite.”  
  
“It matches his eyes.”  
  
“Then he really saw you as a true friend. Irises mean that your friendship is so very deeply cherished. He loved you very much Matthias. The deep color means that you were family to him.” Matthias smiled, tears pricking his eyes.  
  
“I can still cry?”  
  
“Only from happiness.”  
  
~  
  
More geraniums. The two of you were in Iceland now, and more geraniums were growing there along with a bright cream-colored tea rose. It was unlike other tea roses. It held a delicateness no other rose could copy.  
  
“Was he fragile?” you asked as you watched him finally get around to pulling up the rose.  
  
“Who? Emil? Um, in a way he was. He was certainly not as fragile as his older brother treated him, but he still needed support. He craved his independence though.”  
  
“That explains why it was set aside from the geraniums instead of sprouting up in the middle of them like they were with your friend Lukas.”  
  
“So what does this mean? Friendship?”  
  
“Mm. No. It means that he’ll always remember you – all the memories you’ve made together, the laughter and tears, the moments of love and happiness and the moments of grief and anger. He treasures with you because you were a very significant part of his life. Now let’s go. We have a few more places to go.”  
  
“What was your life like?” Matthias asked as you rode along in silence.  
  
“Poor, cold, full of disease.” Matthias cringed.  
  
“Sounds pretty bad.”  
  
“Not so bad. There are good things. Though there weren’t many good moments, they still felt like bliss – moments of such joy, they made life worth living no matter the price paid.”  
  
“What was the best memory you had?”  
  
“Love.”  
  
“You had a lover?” You giggled a bit at this.  
  
“No. I died when I was only eight.” Matthias’s eyes widened. “I fell in love with life when someone showed me kindness. He gave me something I could look forward to every day.”  
  
“Are you sure you weren’t even the least bit in love with him?” You looked at him for a moment.  
  
“Hmm. Maybe I am….”  
  
~  
  
Sweden.  
  
“Did they all think I was stupid or something?!” Matthias said somewhat exasperatedly as he eyed the geraniums with contempt. You giggled. In the center was a thick stem jutting up high above the geraniums branching into brightly-colored freesia.  
  
“It’s abnormally large, don’t you think?”  
  
“The crowd of geraniums?”  
  
“No, I meant the freesia.”  
  
“Well, Berwald was always the tallest and really strong too. The guy was like a freakin’ wall. You couldn’t move him with the all the strength of the strongest men in the world,” Matthias said with a laugh.  
  
“You have such a nice laugh.” You lifted his chin gently with your hand and smiled kindly at him.   
“Laugh and smile more in death as you did in life. Live up to the flower you symbolize in your friend’s life. He felt you were spirited.”  
  
“Huh. You’d never know it. He was really stoic. A rock had more facial expressions than he did.” You giggled before cupping his cheek and lightly stroking your thumb over his cheek. He smiled and leaned into your soft touch.  
  
“You were a great source of uplifting spirit. Even if he never showed it, you were something to look forward to. You were elevating.” Matthias looked deeply into your bright eyes and felt a sense of calm sweep over him. Perhaps this was an effect that was just naturally brought on by angels.  
  
“You’re actually kind of pretty for an angel.” You looked surprised at his statement then unsure then embarrassed and finally flattered.  
  
“Thank you.”  
  
~  
  
“Whose home land is this?” You asked as you watched him pick bunches of crocus and geraniums from the ground.  
  
“Tino’s. He was like Berwald’s ‘wife.’ Well, Berwald likes him anyway, but I wish you could’ve listened to Tino deny his butt off about being married to him,” Matthias said with a laugh. You watched him in silence, watching light dance about his eyes as he recalled fond memories. “You’re not going to tell me what it means?” he asked, looking at you expectantly.  
  
“Tino remembered you for your cheerfulness. I believe you were a great source of consolation and laughter for him. I know why too.”  
  
“We will have one more stop to make. Only this time, it is to get the flower of my own.”  
  
“You have one too?”  
  
“Yes. My time with you isn’t a coincidence, Matthias. I have been with you longer than you know, watching you most of the time and stepping in when I felt I needed to.”  
  
“Are you my guardian angel or something?”  
  
“Yes. After I died, I asked to look after you.”  
  
“Why me?”  
  
“Because you were significant in my life. I met you when I was eight years old…”  
  
 _Your dying wish was to go outside. The doctor had made another call* to your house and said that there was nothing more he could do. You were going to die, and he recommended you be allowed to make the most of it. They wondered if you would ask to eat your favorite dessert for dinner or be given a new toy. But no. You simply wanted to feel the warm glow of the sun one more time if you were to be bed ridden afterwards.  
  
You didn’t feel the need to run and jump during your first visit to the outside after such a long time – and your last visit at that. In fact, you sat on the edge of the street, merely basking in the warm glow of the sun. That was the first time you saw him, Matthias KhØler. He walked down the street in his worn clothes barefoot and smiling brightly. His hair was wild and a dirty blonde color, and his eyes matched the sky above. He stopped to stare at you. You stared back, a blush slowly forming on your face. Then you looked down at your feet and shuffled them while blushing lightly.  
  
“Why’re ya just sittin’ there? Shouldn’t you go play?” he finally asked.  
  
“I don’t really have the energy anymore,” you rasped out. He tilted his head at you before flinching at the sound of your hoarse, rattling coughs and the sight of blood in your palm and now staining the corner of your mouth.  
  
“You should see a doctor.”  
  
“I have. He says I’m going to die.” It was funny. Your eyes were so bright and lively that Matthias didn’t really notice your pale skin and frail body. His smile faded a bit.  
  
“I’m sorry. What are you doing out of bed then?”  
  
“My parents said I could have anything I want to make everything less painful for me. I told them that I couldn’t leave the world without feeling the sun again and breathing fresh air. After this I won’t be allowed to leave my bed again.”  
  
“I’ll help you!” he said excitedly before running off. He was gone for an hour and a half, and you assumed he had forgotten about you. But he returned with a small flower pot and a budding flower growing from it.  
  
“Now you can have a little bit of the outside with you,” he said happily, with a smile that expressed how proud of himself he felt. You stood and hugged him.  
  
“Thank you.” You made sure the flower got plenty of water and set it on the window sill in your room. It had finally reached full bloom on the day you died a few months later._  
  
~  
  
You and Matthias stood over your grave. It was littered with and surrounded by flowers of all sorts symbolizing the deep feelings Matthias instilled in you the few moments you knew each other. Blue violets that grew up from the ground when you became the guardian angel of Matthias; peony to represent the healing of your broken spirit after Matthias had given you the flower and from every moment you spent gazing at it; larkspur to show the beautiful spirit you saw dancing in the eyes of Matthias when you first watched him bound down the street; forget-me-nots from the lasting memory of him that you cherished; star of Bethlehems that symbolized the hope of seeing Matthias again and that maybe you would get better; and finally jutting up from the middle of it all was flower Matthias had given you: purple lilacs – first love. You only took the lilac.  
  
“We can go to heaven now, Matthias,” you said, gingerly cradling the lilac in your arms.  
  
“I had no idea of the influence I had on you.”  
  
“Yes, you were a reason to go on, and even when I died, I thought of you. Your spirit was pure and you were kind and generous. That is why I watched over you in death,” you said as you took his hands and yours. You placed a light kiss on his knuckles. “I watched you grow in goodness and kindness, and while I could not help you avoid death, I wanted to be the one to walk you through it.”  
  
Suddenly, you were enveloped in a hug. Matthias held you close, gently stroking your wings.  
  
“Thank you,” he murmured into your hair.  
  
“We should go,” you said, breaking away and giving him a loving smile. We still have to see which flower is chosen to sing in heaven. Which one do you think it will be?”  
  
“Yours. It brought hope and joy to someone in their final moments. I can’t imagine a flower with a song more heartfelt and beautiful than that."  
  
~  
  
Somewhere in heaven, a lilac sings its song in the chorus of heaven, and an angel and her first love sit in one of heaven’s many fields with their hands twined together, listening to the enchanting melody.

**Author's Note:**

> That's all for now! I hope you liked it!


End file.
